Summary: Sarah Cole and her sister are visiting their uncle and aunt in a small town for the summer. Sarah meets a skinny girl named Jackie right away, and they get along famously. In the midst of getting to know each other they stumble on the body of the local old lady recluse who has been murdered. The rest of the book unfolds with interesting twists and a second mystery is uncovered by the girls.

Review: These characters were likable, and the villain totally scary. It started a little slowly, but the plot developed nicely and ended up having several loose ends tied up neatly.

Recommendation: This is a good book for a middle school readership. I liked it, and would read more by Lisa Orchard. I give it four quills.

Summary: Who are Jonah and Chip anyway? Even they don’t know. When cryptic messages start showing up in their mailboxes, they suspect they may be in danger. The two boys, along with Jonah’s adoptive sister, Katherine have a mystery to solve: the letters, the trip to the FBI office, strange people appearing and disappearing at will…what is going on?

Review: Talk about leaving you in a position where you HAVE to read the next book in the series. You are thrown right into the mystery at the very beginning and the suspense builds seamlessly to the end. But it’s not the end. It’s only the beginning.

Recommendation: Great read for those interested in science fiction and time travel. Geared towards young adult, but intriguing for any age. Four quills: